Peter Pan & The Shadow

Chapter 12.

   "What are you staring at?" She asked and you smiled sheepishly, trying to stutter a sentence when Tiger Lily followed your gaze and she gently grabbed the feather in her fist. "John gave it to me the day he decided to stay." She smiled and raised it to her lips, letting the feather run over her bottom lip. You felt your stomach drop at the mention of John, what were you going to do with him?

"Hey Lily," a voice said after you were halfway through your porridge. "I was think that we co-" You looked up and watched John stand there, frozen in his position with his eyes locked upon you.
"I-" You tried to say, wanting to make it clear.
He was quicker than you to react and surprised you with saying this; "I'm sorry." You blinked at him with widened eyes and your mouth open having frozen when trying to say something, John just smiled sheepishly and continued. "I ruined the mood pretty much yesterday." He said and scratched his neck with a crooked smile. You gawped at him even more. You didn't expect this at all. "Tiger Lily explained it all to me. How you reacted to what I said." He began to rub his left palm with his right thumb as he continued to explain his actions. "I- I lost someone, named Wendy, you look like her."
You had figure out how to breathe for a moment. "It's okay. I'm sorry too. For making you remember that."
John smiled sadly. "Not your fault." He muttered and looked down and Tiger Lily immediately placed her bowl on the log and stood up to comfort John. He was slightly taller than her. She cupped his cheeks and looked into his blue eyes while saying something in a low voice and he just gazed into her eyes with this look you couldn't describe. There was a close bond between them. There was a close bond between Tiger Lily and Peter you had noticed, but this was far beyond that. It was love... but they didn't look like the typical young couple who couldn't keep their hands off each other, no, they were like family, like two people who had been through rough times together but they still hold on to each other. They're each other's support.
"John is a good guy." Cal said and leaned closer to whisper it to you. You kept watching how a tear fell from John's eye, and how Tiger Lily tip toed to kiss it away and it was such a pure moment that you felt like you were stealing it from them by looking. You turned back to your porridge, no longer feeling hungry. "We'll find our other half too one day." Cal reassured you and himself as he noticed the look on your face. "We all do, some of us... lose our other half, but someone a new one always shows up. It can be a friend, a lover, an animal." He explained and you watched him as he did. "You just, sense it as soon as your eyes meet. A soft tug in your stomach, pulling you towards the other. Sometimes it's like you finally feel whole, as if the other person stitches you together just by being there." As Cal spoke you heard Tiger Lily's and John's mutters behind you and you couldn't help yourself but to think of Peter as Cal spoke.
Just sitting here so far away from him had you longing for his presence. As if you were lost without him. The longing feeling ignited and you felt a searing anger fill you. But he was an idiot. It was nothing but pretend. There wasn't even anything there.

Tiger Lily took you for a walk, thinking that you would like to ask some questions about the camp, about its people.
"Usually," you began, "not to generalize, but usually Indian names have a meaning, like they stand for something, right?" You asked and Tiger Lily grinned.
"They do, don't worry," she added the last part, noticing your nervous behavior. "Well my name is in two, Tiger Lily, I am called both names, it is based on a flower that bloomed in the area, my father loved the flower and often brought one home to my mother. The flower that connected my mother and father should forever continue to connect them and that's why they called me that name. Also it is a symbol of pride, in a positive way." She explained and then took seat at the side of the path you walked on, sitting in the shadow of a tree and you took place beside her. "Cal, my friend and guard. He's named after the flower Calla, his name is actually Cal-lum." She frowned a little she struggled to explain his name. "His father was a traveler, he went around to different tribes and met a lot of people. He met someone he explained to him an ancient language called Latin. Lumen means 'light' in this language and because Cal was born when light was being born and the Calla flowers had blossomed the day before, he was called Calum. We call him Cal though." She smiled brightly, proud of her explanation while you sat there with an impressed expression upon your face.
"The lost boys talked about, a name. They wanted me to have a name too."
"Well Peter has a funny way of giving names I must say." Tiger Lily said with a grimace and you chuckled. Then she continued. "If I should give you a name it would be... should it be a flower? I think Lavender would be good, it seems like you're a very loyal person and you're cautious of what you're doing. But you got heat inside of you, I myself would know, since I'm a very fiery person, so maybe, Lav-ire... Lavire?" She said and grinned nervously at you but you couldn't help but feel all warm inside. Being given a name with a meaning behind it, it was like a great gift. You couldn't explain how good that felt. As if you were accepted into the tribe and you now knew why Peter gave his lost boys' names. Once again at the thought of Peter you grimaced.
"You don't like it?" Tiger Lily asked which shook you out of your thoughts.
"No - I mean yes, I love it." You exclaimed and Tiger Lily widened her eyes but looked satisfied.
"Alright, Lavire, let's get back to camp."

"Fire? Really?" Cal said with an expression of disbelief as you sat around the fire that night. "I think Wind is better, she can be gentle, I sense, and she can be a fiery storm, she's not like you, leaving nothing but ashes behind no, she leaves destruction behind, so that you will have to clean up, take time to understand her and have to replay her storm again and again."
John was nodding. "Sounds good."
Tiger Lily looked very offended. "So what would you call her? Lavind?" She huffed.
"No, Winder." Cal said with a proud smile and you couldn't help but be impressed.
"You want to fight about that? The one who wins chooses her name?" Tiger Lily stood and John sprang to his feet to drag her down again. She didn't budge.
"Oh come on Lily..." Cal dragged out her name and looked at her with a smug expression.
You felt like you had to say something. "How about... John chooses?"
"Oh bad idea!" Cal objected.
"No! Y/n!" John pleaded you and Tiger Lily just grinned.
"Tiger Lily will just make John choose her side." Cal tried to argue and you chuckled.
"Well how do we settle this then?" You asked and John sat down placing his chin in his right hand and looking like he was thinking this through.
"Let's make some tests." Tiger Lily said with a smirk upon her face. "Tests within the elements, but with the focus of fire and wind. What she have best results in will determine her tribe name."
Cal smiled and looked at you while you felt your stomach drop. "Deal." He said.

A/N:

Sorry for the wait, I'm quite busy lately, ugh, I'm doing my best to keep writing! <3